Cambodia Sees $8 M Drop in Revenue After Visa Fee Waivers

Cambodia saw an $8 million decline in revenue last year after waving visa fees for five Asian nations, but the lost money would be recouped in more tourists visiting and spending inside the country, the Minister of Tourism said Sunday.

Minister of Thong Khon said the visa policy should fuel tourism in Cambodia and confirmed that the ministry is still planning on expanding the initiative to include Thailand next year. He said tourism arrivals picked up by 9 percent last month when compared to the same time in 2008.
“It is still good for small businesses,” the minister said of the strategy. “The Cambodian tourism sector is starting to improve.”

Cambodia currently has visa waivers in place for citizens of Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines and Vietnam. The waiver means travelers from those countries do not have to pay $20 for tourism visas or $25 for business visas to legally enter Cambodia.

One of Cambodia’s main industries, the tourism sector slowed in 2009 with Cambodia seeing a 1.1 percent decline in international visitors for the first sex months, after years of double-digit growth. In light of the slowdown, some industry operators have embraced the policy and want it expanded.

Som Sun, owner for the Mekong Heritage tour company, said the exemption is a source of profit and not a loss since visitor typically spend more than the visa fee.

“Visa exemptions help push more visitors to want to visit our country,” she said, adding that her Phnom Penh-based company received more e-mail inquiries from potential travelers in the five countries exempt from the travel document.

Ang Kem Eang, president of the Cambodian Association of Travel Agents, said he would like to see the program expand.

“I think the state lost income but that income went directly to people who have businesses dealing with the tourism sector,” he said. “I want the government to have more visa exemption with countries where there are potential customers.”

In 2008, Cambodia welcomed roughly 2.1 million tourists. Out of the five visa-exempt nations only Vietnam ranked in the top 10. Last year, there were about 209,000 travelers from Vietnam, roughly 10 percent of the total number of visitors. Combined, the four remaining visa-free countries brought in about 221,900 travelers.